Manchester United enjoyed a stroll in the spring sunshine on Saturday as they eased to a 2-0 home win over Fulham to open a 10-point lead at the top of the Premier League.
Holders Manchester United were given a tough draw in the last 16 of the Champions League when they were paired with Italian champions and Serie A leaders Inter Milan on Friday. Another heavyweight game will feature Real Madrid and Liverpool, champions 14 times between them, while last year's runners-up Chelsea were paired with Juventus.
A round-up of weekend action in the main European leagues.
Leaders Manchester United will meet Premier League rivals Reading in the FA Cup fifth round.
Aymeric Laporte's late header sealed a deserved 1-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur
Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal admitted it would be very hard to finish in the top four after his team's insipid 2-1 loss at Sunderland in the Premier League on Saturday.
Manchester United beat Watford 4-1 to reach their 18th FA Cup final.
Andy Carroll helped himself to a hat-trick as Newcastle United stunned Aston Villa 6-0 to mark a memorable home return to the Premier League on Sunday.
Goalkeeper Tim Howard saved two penalties against his former club to inspire Everton to a 4-2 shootout win over Manchester United on Sunday which sent them into the FA Cup final for the first time since 1995. Howard saved United's first two spot-kicks from Dimitar Berbatov and Rio Ferdinand after a turgid semi-final ended 0-0 after extra time at Wembley Stadium.
Images from the English Premier League matches played on Saturday
Two Steven Gerrard penalties helped Liverpool to a crushing 3-0 victory at bitter rivals Manchester United on Sunday to leave them breathing down the necks of Premier League leaders Chelsea.
Manchester United crushed Derby County 4-1 away while Everton beat Aston Villa 3-1 at Goodison Park on Sunday to reach the quarter-finals of the FA Cup. United were pushed all the way by the Championship (second division) strugglers in the League Cup semi-finals last month but cruised home this time with goals by Nani, Darron Gibson, Cristiano Ronaldo and Danny Welbeck.
A third successive league victory put Leicester City back above Chelsea into third place on goal difference with 23 points from 11 games.
Bolton Wanderers moved off the bottom of the Premier League and out of the relegation zone with a 2-0 home defeat of Manchester City on Sunday. A poor game was settled by two late goals, the first a close-range effort from Ricardo Gardner and the second an own goal from City defender Richard Dunne.
Manchester United moved top of the Premier League on Saturday after Dimitar Berbatov struck in the last minute to give them a 1-0 win over Bolton Wanderers.
Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini is ready to bid for Liverpool ace striker Fernando Torres and battle it out with Chelsea to get the Spanish forward.
Manchester City moved back into third place and almost guaranteed Champions League qualification thanks to a 3-1 home victory against West Bromwich Albion on Tuesday at the Etihad Stadium.
Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney was on target again to help the hosts crush bottom club Portsmouth 5-0 and return to the top of the Premier League on Saturday. Liverpool overcame the dismissal of Sotiros Kyrgiakos to beat Everton 1-0 in a fierce Merseyside derby at Anfield to move into the top four for the first time since October.
A club of Manchester United's stature should be vying for silverware on all fronts, midfielder Ander Herrera said, adding that a win in the FA Cup final against Crystal Palace on Saturday would raise spirits after a poor season. Louis van Gaal's men, who finished fifth in the Premier League this campaign, failed to qualify for the Champions League for a second time in three seasons and hope to win their first trophy since taking home the Community Shield in 2013. "We have to be realistic. United should be fighting for every title. We didn't do that with the Champions League," Herrera told British media. "We didn't do that with the Premier League. So we have two options. Firstly, feel sorry for ourselves. Or, secondly, get this trophy for the fans, for our club and for ourselves."
Arsenal went top of the Premier League when they beat West Ham United 2-0 with goals from Denilson and Cesc Fabregas on Saturday despite playing for more than half the match at the Emirates with 10 men.
Jose Mourinho was delighted that Chelsea made a winning start to their Champions League campaign on Wednesday, but said he was not happy that Manchester United, Manchester City and Arsenal had all lost their opening matches.
Darron Gibson fired holders Manchester United through to the last four of the English League Cup on Tuesday with a 2-0 win at Old Trafford that ended Tottenham Hotspur's hopes of a third successive final.
The German coach pipped Leeds United boss Marcelo Bielsa, Wycombe Wanderers manager Gareth Ainsworth and last year's winner Chris Wilder of Sheffield United to the Alex Ferguson Trophy -- named after the former Manchester United manager.
The Gunners will take on Manchester United at Old Trafford in the FA Cup fifth round.
Manchester United and Liverpool, England's two most successful clubs, will do battle in the third round of the FA Cup after the draw was made on Sunday.
And champions Arsenal face Blackburn Rovers in next month's FA Cup semi-finals in Cardiff.
Manchester United won 2-1 at Crystal Palace to consolidate fourth spot.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Manchester United insist they have nothing to fear over Le Havre's claims they acted improperly when they signed French teenager Paul Pogba last month.
Tottenham Hotspur continued their Premier League title push with a 2-0 win over Everton on Wednesday to put them level on points with second-placed champions Manchester United and three behind leaders Manchester City.
Liverpool are on course to shatter the English Premier League's record points haul and the way Juergen Klopp's side are churning out wins it would now be a surprise if they failed to do so. With 19 wins and a draw they are averaging 2.90 points per game, putting them on course for 110 from 38 games which would also be a record for Europe's top five leagues.
News of all that transpired on and off the football field
Chelsea also begin the new English season at home, against promoted Birmingham City.
Wayne Rooney and Nani both ended lengthy scoring droughts with two goals each as Manchester United finished a bad week on an upbeat note with an emphatic 4-1 home win over Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League on Saturday.
Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas has quashed persistent transfer rumours, saying he had never thought of leaving the StamfordBridge and that he is extremely happy with his current club.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice as Manchester United beat Fulham 2-0 at Old Trafford on Monday to climb to second in the Premier League.
Champions Manchester United stumbled to their second successive Premier League draw on Wednesday when they were held 1-1 at Portsmouth.
Barcelona's Luis Suarez netted twice for a 2-1 win over 10-man Atletico Madrid in their Champions League quarter-final, first leg on Tuesday after the visitors' Fernando Torres opened the scoring and was later sent off.
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